


Selene

by PrincessSelene04



Category: Lunar Chronicles - Marissa Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Tags May Change, and he thinks she's a terrible person, but remember this is because Cinder is Queen, characters added later, kai is gonna act a little bit like an ass, spoiler alert: she's not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-31
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:54:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22480606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessSelene04/pseuds/PrincessSelene04
Summary: Earth has been weakened by the plague Luna sent to their planet and now it was time for Selene to offer them the antidote. The catch? A marriage alliance with the newly crowned Emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth, of course.((I originally posted the first two chapters of this on my old wattpad page, but I decided to continue it on here 5 years later))
Relationships: Jacin Clay/Winter Hayle-Blackburn, Kai/Linh Cinder
Kudos: 36





	1. Of Galas and Gowns

Selene stared out the window of her chambers, watching light glint off the waves of Artemisia lake. She was worried what tomorrow would bring. Her ship was scheduled to leave for the Eastern Commonwealth at 10:00. The plan was to use the antidote for their Letumosis Plague--a biological weapon created by the Lunar government--as a bargaining chip into a marriage alliance.

There was a knock at the door but she almost didn't notice it. "You may enter."

A young servant girl entered the room carrying a stack of boxes. The girl must have been new because Selene didn't think she had ever seen her before. She had a petite frame and was no older than the queen herself. "Your Majesty." She bowed despite the boxes in her arms.

"Here let me take those off your hands." Selene got up and took the large items, setting them on the bench at the foot of her bed. "What's your name?"

"Terriana, Your Majesty."

She smiled gently at the fragile and innocent girl. "Would you please help me dress for the ball, Terri? You don't mind if I call you Terri do you? Or perhaps I could call you Ana? Which do you prefer?"

"You may call me whatever pleases you, Your Majesty." Terriana said as she made her way to the boxes, unpacking the lavish gown, shoes, and necklace.

"But I wish to know what pleases _you._ "

"Terria, please." The girl seemed to be warming up to her. No doubt she had heard the rumors of the ruthless queen. However, that was far from the truth. The ruthless one was Princess Levana, Selene's aunt.

"And please call me Selene when we are in private. No need for formalities here."

"Yes, Your” --she paused, cleared her throat-- “Selene."

"Right. Well, let's get dressed for this grueling ball now, shall we?"

* * *

Selene was admittedly bored out of her mind as she watched nobles swirl around the ballroom. She sat in her throne, watching them from within her uncomfortably tight red satin dress. At the top were mirror-like pieces that made light shimmer around the room at even her slightest movement. It flared out at her knees creating a train behind her when she walked. But she wasn't doing very much walking due to her silver, diamond encrusted heels. Her hair was curled and pinned up elegantly, but left a few small locks dangling.

To her left sat Levana in an exceedingly showy, black lace dress. On her right was Levava's stepdaughter, Winter, who donned a flowy ivory dress that contrasted beautifully with her ebony skin.

Together, the three of them wore Luna’s national colors. 

A servant came their way with a tray of differently colored drinks. The women at her sides politely waited for their queen to choose first. Selene immediately picked up champagne glass with a blue liquid, recognizing it as one of her favorites...blueberry. Levana picked up a yellow one: honey. And Winter took a red one: apple.

A man, around early twenties, came up to them and bowed. "Your Majesty, if I may, may I ask for you to be my partner in the next dance?"

Selene frowned. She hated dancing, mostly because she’d always been terrible at it. Clumsy even. She accepted regardless.

They made their way to the floor, and thankfully he was an excellent dancer, flawlessly leading her around the room while making polite small talk.

"I must say, you are the best dancer I've ever had the pleasure of dancing with. But you still have yet to tell me your name."

"My apologies, Your Majesty. Lord Camrin, of the Middle Ring." He bowed his head with an amused expression.

"And what do you _appear_ to find so entertaining?" She attempted to sound threatening but by the grin that spread across his face she knew she was unsuccessful.

"Please don't take offense, but you were not quite what I was expecting, Your Majesty."

"I get that often. And call me Selene, the 'Your Majesty' gets exhausting after a while."

He smirked, green eyes dazzling. "Only if you call me Camrin."

She let out a small laugh. They carried on throughout the night as if they were old friends. Which was unusual, she didn't normally get so easily attached to nobles. She allowed him to help her dance her worries away.

Of course when she was having one of the greatest times, maybe of her life, she remembered anyway. The worries she hadn't thought of for the entire night came crawling back into her mind. She stumbled, accidentally stepping on Camrin's foot.

They both gasped; him in pain, her in shock. She noticed a few couples glance their way.

"Aces, I'm so sorry!" Selene quickly apologized.

He chuckled through the pain. "The fault is mine, I should have been paying more attention."

"No, really, I'm sorry."

"Trust me, Selene, it's alright." He whispered as they began dancing again.


	2. Highness and Majesty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit trashy, but I wrote it 5 years ago and only made minor edits. I promise the next chapter will sound better.

Selene waved farewell to Levana as their ship took off, Winter at her side. Selene was glad she was able to convince Winter into coming...not that it took very much. The only thing she had to do was make sure Jacin Clay could come along with them and the princess was sold.

They’d both known Jacin since they were children, playing and telling each other everything. But two years ago, he became a guard, and spending quality time with him was harder and harder to come by. 

The small ship leveled off.

After eating a light snack, Selene decided to stay in her room for the rest of the trip. She walked down the silver hallway. The door slid open when she approached, and she walked inside. Selene sat on the side of her bed, running her fingers across the satin fabric. With a heavy sigh, she collapsed onto the cloud-like mattress. Her eyes closed into a dreamless sleep.

Hours later she awoke to Winter lightly tapping on her shoulder. "We're landing in half an hour."

"Thank you." She stood up and walked to the closet. "Help me dress?" Terria came along too, but Selene didn't feel the need to bother the girl right then.

Winter smiled.

They landed just on time. Selene stepped out of the ship and descended the hot metal staircase. The sun smoldered on the pavement. Selene could see the heat waves rising and soaking into her skin as she made her way to the prince. 

No. No he wasn’t really a prince anymore, was he? He’d be crowned Emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth at the end of the week.

"Your Highness," Selene nodded, holding her hand out to him.

The prince was younger than she imagined, no older than twenty. Maybe he was even a year or two younger. He was tall and lean. His jet black hair was down neatly. His copper-brown eyes bored into her with hatred that shocked her. 

Selene knew the rumors of her wickedness--everyone did--and she knew where they stemmed from. From fear of her aunt, her mother, her grandparents, her  _ people _ . Yes, there were many terrible Lunars out there, but she wanted to change that stigma. She wanted to show the people of earth how truly good her people could be.

"Your Majesty."

"I'm truly sorry for the loss of your father." She stuck to formalities, well aware that the recently deceased emperor would be a sore subject for the young prince. They could talk politics later, for now it was best to let him grieve.

"Thank you for your kindness." He nodded, acknowledging her but with a hint of aggression.

_ This is how it’s going to be, isn’t it? _

"Let's not stand in the blistering sun all day," A man Selene presumed was Kaito's adviser said. "I'm sure you've had a long trip, Your Majesty, I'll have servants show you to your suite in the palace and we will have the treaty meeting tomorrow afternoon. That should give you plenty of time to settle in."

Perfect. Waiting until the next day would give Selene to strategize on how to convince the prince, no, emperor, into marrying her. It wasn’t her plan, it was Levana’s. Her aunt wanted to make sure that all the planning her, Channary, and the Lunar scientists went through wasn't put to waste, therefore not allowing the Selene to have a choice in the matter.

Selene would much rather trade the antidote for the raw materials they needed and get on with life, but she had to admit it was a good idea. Marriage would make it so that her planet was well off throughout the rest of her reign. Maybe even years after. 

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

The next morning, the young queen decided to explore the gardens. "Terria, would you accompany Princess Winter and I on our stroll?" Selene asked in a way that would allow the girl to deny her request if she wanted. Unsurprisingly, Terriana agreed, most likely still afraid of angering her queen.

The three women made their way outside while small talking. Winter was at Selene's side and Terria followed silently behind. They roamed through bushes of roses and daffodils for a while until she decided to address the servant again.

"How old are you Terria?"

The innocent girl answered so quietly Selene almost didn’t hear her. "I turned fifteen in July, Your Majesty."

She was only a year and a half younger than Selene herself? She couldn't help pitying the girl. Reaching back, she grabbed Terria by her elbow and pulled her forward so that she was walking in line with Winter and herself.

Winter giggled at the girl's petrified expression. "She doesn't bite, I promise."

"She's correct, I don't." She smiled, "I despise having conversations and not being able to look at the other person in the eyes. We're all people, formalities be damned!" Selene realized she was speaking loudly and quieted down. "How long have you been working in the palace?"

"Not very long, a week maybe?" Terriana must have been inspired to ease up after Selene's little speech because she spoke with a hint of confidence, leaving out the proper "Your Majesty" that she almost always addressed her with.

"That's strange," Winter said.

"Why?"

Selene spoke up, "Usually servants are taken before puberty unless their parents are in debt or have committed a crime." 

Out of the corners of her eyes, she noticed Terria blink a few times. Was she trying not to cry? Oh, the poor girl.

They stopped to sit on a stone bench overlooking a koi pond surrounded bushes of flowers. 

"What happened, Terri?" Selene encouraged, “Why aren't you with your family?"

As Terria allowed her tears to fall, Winter embraced her.

"My... my father and I were caught stealing food for our family." She sounded hesitant to admit her crimes, but did anyway. "He, my mother, and older brother all work in the mines, but even with their three incomes, it's not enough to support a family of seven." 

Selene was confused. Three incomes from the mines, even low ones, should have been enough to support a large family. That is... unless her advisers weren't telling the truth about the outer circles' economics.

"What sector is your family from?"

"We're in RM-5. We didn't want to do it, Your Maj--Selene--but my parents, brother, and I had already given all our food to the three youngest, practically starving ourselves. Then that food ran out and the little ones were hungry and we had to do  _ something _ ."

The poor girl's sobs had calmed a little, but her cheeks were red and wet with tears. 

"I understand, and I don’t blame you for wanting to help yourself and your family. But I’m confused that you have this problem when living in the middle sector. Usually these issues only arise in the outer sectors."

Selene’s eyes flickered to her cousin, who shared an equally confused look with her.

Terriana sniffled, "I know many people with similar problems."

The treads of an android approached them on the bench. 

"I promise to do what I can to help your family, Terria. I will get to the bottom of whatever is wrong here. I have a feeling my government has been keeping things from me and I will not tolerate it for much longer."

The android wheeled to a stop in front of them. "Your Majesty Queen Selene, Emperor Kaito is currently available and would like to pre-discuss the Treaty of Bremen."

"Right then." Selene stood up and brushed off her dress. She patted Terria's folded hands gently, "I'll see the two of you at dinner. Lead the way android."

“You can call me Nansi.”

“Lead the way Nansi.”


End file.
